Judges 15:1-13 ▼

1 Later on, at the time of the wheat harvest, Samson (like the sun) took a young goat and went to visit his wife. “I want to go to my wife in her room,” he said. But her father would not let him enter.

2 “I was sure that you thoroughly hated her,” said her father, “so I gave her to one of the men who accompanied you. Is not her younger sister more beautiful than she? Please take her instead.”

3 Samson (like the sun) said to them, “This time I will be blameless in doing harm to the Philistines (immigrants).”

4 Then Samson (like the sun) went out and caught three hundred foxes. And he took torches, turned the foxes tail-to-tail, and fastened a torch between each pair of tails.

5 Then he lit the torches and released the foxes into the standing grain of the Philistines (immigrants), burning up the piles of grain and the standing grain, as well as the vineyards and olive groves.

6 “Who did this?” the Philistines (immigrants) demanded. “It was Samson (like the sun), the son-in-law of the Timnite (You will number: a portion),” they were told. “For his wife was given to his companion.” So the Philistines went up and burned her and her father to death.

7 And Samson (like the sun) told them, “Because you⁺ have done this, I will not rest until I have taken vengeance upon you⁺.”

8 And he struck them ruthlessly \he struck them hip and thigh/ with a great slaughter, and then went down and stayed in the cave at the rock of Etam (lair of wild beasts).

9 Then the Philistines (immigrants) went up, camped in Judah (praised), and deployed themselves near the town of Lehi \and spread out in Lehi/.

10 “Why have you⁺ attacked us?” said the men of Judah (praised). The Philistines replied, “We have come to arrest Samson (like the sun) and pay him back for what he has done to us.”

11 In response, three thousand men of Judah (praised) went to the cave at the rock of Etam (lair of wild beasts), and they asked Samson (like the sun), “Do you not realize that the Philistines (immigrants) rule over us? What have you done to us?” “I have done to them what they did to me,” he replied.

12 But they said to him, “We have come down to arrest you and hand you over to the Philistines (immigrants).” Samson (like the sun) replied, “Swear to me that you⁺ will not kill me yourselves.”

13 “No,” they answered, “we will not kill you, but we will tie you up securely and hand you over to them.” So they bound him with two new ropes and led him up from the rock.